Different Shades of Black and White
by Hikari Bara
Summary: K, No. 6 AND D. Gray-man. Gakuen AU. Three young boys are headed for a crash-course into each others' lives and dark secrets, starting with their mysteriously similar appearances...but what will it lead to? (Nezumi x Shion Kuroh x Shiro Kanda x Allen) *FanFiction only allowed me two categories for the crossover. This also features D. Gray-man.*
1. A White Backdrop

_Different Shades of Black and White_

* * *

Chapter One

A White Backdrop

* * *

The small boy yawned and scratched his head with an amused smile playing on his lips. He was in a particularly good mood today—the sky was clear, and it was Sunday; the weekend. He had no reason at all to be unhappy. He watched merrily as a girl plucked dandelion weeds out from the cracks in the sidewalk, and proceeded to place them behind her ear—probably fantasizing about being a forest maiden.

It could have been one of the most perfect days the boy had ever lived.

"Hey, Isana!"

Isana Yashiro—also known as "Shiro" by some who claimed to be close with him—spun around to see one of his classmates waving. He was with a pretty girl about their age, though Yashiro couldn't quite put his finger on who it was. Certainly not someone from their class—he would remember someone like that. A senpai, maybe? But he was almost positive he'd remember someone like that, too.

"Ah, this is my sister, Neko. Neesan, this is my classmate, Isana Yashiro," the boy's classmate, Arai Keisuke, introduced. Yashiro had never really paid much attention to this classmate of his, but he seemed nice enough, so he decided not to run away from Arai's inevitable offer to lunch.

"Nice to meet you," Yashiro bowed politely to Arai's sister, and heard her giggle softly.

"Nice to meet you as well, Shiro!"

Yashiro tensed. _Eh? Straight for the given name? And how does she know about my nickname?!_

Swiftly, he raised himself out of his bow, and before Arai could offer lunch—which the boy was just then opening his mouth to suggest—he gave a feeble wave to the both of them. "Sorry, but my mom wants me home for lunch. Said something about making soup for my little sister, 'cause she wanted to go out to eat with her new boyfriend. Sorry about that, and it was nice meeting you!" He quickly dipped his head in farewell before darting off into the crowds of people that never failed to bustle about the city during midday.

_Still cunning as ever, huh? _Yashiro breathed sarcastically to himself. Truth be told, he didn't have any sort of family like that—no mother searching for a new love, no younger sister to make soup for. It was him, himself and he, all living in his little apartment located near the school he attended. But nobody knew that—it was a well-kept secret by him.

After forcing himself against the crowd for a grueling ten minutes, he ducked into a small umbrella shop that was tucked away between two large department stores. It was old and smelled funny, but Yashiro took refuge in the dim rows of faded umbrellas.

"Ah—welcome."

Yashiro's head snapped up at the sound of the voice. An older man was standing behind a worn-out counter, topped with an ancient cash register.

_I wonder how long this man stands in wait for customers here…_ Yashiro almost grinned sadly at the thought. _Poor guy._

"Wow, I've never noticed this store before. It's nice," Yashiro complimented, glancing about the shabby room. What surprised him wasn't the man's next comment, but the truth of what he had just said. He had instantly grown to like this tiny shop.

"You don't have to lie," the man chuckled. "I know this isn't the best and greatest store in the city—in fact, it may well be the shabbiest! But I'll continue to wait for each and every umbrella to be sold, yessir. These umbrellas are my life." He glanced about the room, filled with nothing but umbrellas, with a cheerful gleam in his eyes. Yashiro caught himself smiling at the man's simple happiness. How great this world would be if everyone could be as easily satisfied as this man.

"But I'm not lying at all, sir, not one bit. The umbrellas are nice, even if they're a little faded," Yashiro continued, swiping his finger over the thickly coated dust that covered one of the umbrellas. He gasped slightly before taking a closer look at that particular umbrella. There was a slight streak of vibrant red where his finger had slid. These umbrellas weren't faded at all; they were smothered in dust.

"Woah, would you look at that! They aren't fading after all!" Yashiro could feel himself grinning childishly as he picked the red umbrella up off the shelf, but he didn't care. He opened the umbrella, which cracked and shook most of the dust off. He swiped his hand over the lingering particles, and when it was a satisfactory, brilliant red color, he placed it on his shoulder and twirled it around behind his head. "This is a really beautiful umbrella, sir."

The man chuckled again at the sight of a young boy, who probably belonged in one of the many department stores that drowned his shop in shadows, smiling because of his umbrellas. It was a wonderful sight that almost made the man want to cry.

"Do you want that umbrella?" the man asked suddenly, and he smiled when Yashiro stopped and stared at him.

"Oh, yeah, sure! How much is it?" the boy quickly agreed.

The man shrugged. "It's free. I'll give it to you. I've never seen someone so happy to hold one of my umbrellas—go on, you can take it."

He laughed when Yashiro's jaw dropped.

"Sir, you're kidding, right?"

"Of course not."

"But—"

"It suits you. The red goes nicely with your hair," the man continued, glancing upwards at Yashiro's head of colorless hair. Yashiro blushed faintly; his hair was the one thing that could trip him up. He'd never dyed it before—he had been born with naturally powdery-white hair.

"Th-thank you, sir. I'll tell my classmates about this place…" Quickly, as if not to change the man's mind—since he did indeed love the brilliant red umbrella—he exited the store, waving in goodbye.

As the man watched the boy go, he thought about his parting words. "Classmates" he had said. Not "friends". Maybe he was just imagining things, but he thought he had seen a lonely shine in the boy's eyes. He likened it to that of a lost puppy in need of a master, a home.

_Well, that boy was very nice. I bet he has lots of friends, whoever he is. _The man decided to let himself think so, and welcomed his new employee back when he realized he was back from his lunch break.

"Did we have any customers while I was away, Master?" the boy asked in a polite tone.

"Ah, you know how I always tell you not to call me that, Kuroh-kun."

* * *

Yashiro folded his umbrella back up, as if to shield it from greedy eyes, and slung it over his shoulder. That man had certainly been weird—giving up a marvelous umbrella such as this—but nonetheless, he was a nice guy.

"Well, I guess it's about time I actually _do _get back home," Yashiro told himself, and began heading in the direction of his apartment.

* * *

"I'm leaving, Mother."

"Have a nice day, Shion!"

The door shut behind Shion, giving a soft _thud _sound. Today was his first day at school, since he'd been sick throughout the first week. For the millionth time that morning, he messed with the collar of his new school uniform, unable to get used to the sensation of fabric rubbing against the middle of his neck.

_Why is the collar so high? _He complained inwardly. _And it's black when the weather outside is nearly one hundred degrees…*_

Shion, nevertheless, pushed away his complaints and began his fifteen-minute trek to school. Though today was his very first day, he wasn't particularly scared or apprehensive at all. In fact, he was looking forward to the day. He and his mother had just moved into the city, after living in the country all his life. He was eager to experience the city life and learn what kids his age did around here.

Yes, this was going to be an exciting school year.

* * *

* I'm an American who goes by Fahrenheit, not Celsius. *Bows head in apology* I'm way too lazy to look up what one hundred degrees is in Celsius. Though I probably should've learned how to convert the two at one point or another…

Arai Keisuke is my cute little OC ^^ he's Neko's brother in the story. This is AU after all. But he doesn't play a big role, so don't sweat it.

Also, I apologize if I got any Japanese references incorrect. I only know English and am currently learning Spanish, and only know Japanese from watching anime. So if any technical points are wrong, let me know, and I'll fix 'em! Advice on anything OOC is also appreciated.

Anyway, YAY for chapter one! So I was glancing around at No. 6, D. Gray-man and K Project fanart and realized that there are a bunch of crossover pics for the three shiro ukes and kuro semes for the anime. And then, voila, this idea popped into my head! I was planning on bunching all three uke's beginning stories into this first chapter, but I'm shit tired right now, and I'm going to have Allen-kun come in a little later on in the story for the sake of trying to keep this as non-OOC as possible. The umbrella idea was really spur of the moment xD as I was writing I remembered Shiro-chan's infamous red umbrella! And I realized that I simply couldn't cut it out, even if this is an AU. So toward the end you get a little snippit of Shion, and he'll be the main focus of the next chapter. Gotta feature one of my favorite ukes of all time! (Though technically each shiro uke could be a seme too O.o)

Ja ne~!


	2. Fate's Blackened Hands

Chapter Two

Fate's Blackened Hands

* * *

When Shion finally made it to the school and headed inside, he was greeted by a sea of black. Black uniforms dominated the halls, with the occasional flash of white undershirt visible by an unbuttoned uniform. He almost felt drowned in that much black…

Distracted by his thoughts, he slammed into someone quite hard. He recoiled, gripping his temples that throbbed in pain. "Oww…" he moaned.

"A-are you okay?"

Shion's head snapped up, mirrored by the boy in front of him. They had asked the question in unison. But that wasn't even the least bit shocking as to what met his eyes when he got a good look at the boy in front of him.

His hair was a fine, white color—and the sheen of light it brilliantly reflected suggested that it was natural, not bleached. His face even looked similar to Shion's own—as far as the boy could tell, at least. The thought of the two of them being related, even twins, crossed Shion's mind, but he knew that was impossible.

"W-woah. It's like looking through a mirror," the boy joked, and Shion was slightly surprised that he had recovered so quickly from seeing someone who looked almost exactly like him. He was smiling now, and extended his hand to Shion.

"Isana Yashiro. Nice to meet you," he greeted cheerfully, and Shion could've sworn he saw the boy—Isana—glow.

Shion stared for a moment longer before clumsily reaching out to grasp Isana's outstretched hand. "I—I'm Shion. Nice to meet you too…" he replied, his words tripping over themselves.

"Are you new around here? I can show you around."

Shion's eyes narrowed slightly. He couldn't understand why this Isana kid was taking their freakishly similar appearances so easily. "No, it's fine…thank you, though," he added in a brighter tone, trying not to offend Isana. He was, after all, extending a hand of friendship to him—even if that was due to, most likely, their appearances.

"You sure? There are some weird people at this school. Be careful," Isana replied, not seeming to be deflated at all. In fact, he practically bounced away into the dark crowd that seemed to swallow him whole.

* * *

"Hey, Shion!"

Shion jerked his body around to see a familiar looking boy slide up to him. Isana Yashiro.

"Oh—hi, Isana."

"Y'know, you can just call me Yashiro if you want."

Shion gave a little sidestep away from Isana. "Err…if that's what you prefer…"

"Oh, no!" Isana's eyes widened. "Whatever makes you feel comfortable. I was just thinking that you don't have to be so polite."

Shion gave a small smile at that. "Well, thanks," he replied, more warmly than he'd spoken to the boy before.

"So where's your lunch?" Isana looked Shion over, but didn't see a lunch container or tray from the school cafeteria.

Shion shrugged. "I'm not that hungry. My mom will make me something when I get home," he said. "But you don't have anything to eat either, do you?" Shion nodded at Isana's own empty hands, which made the boy smirk.

"Well, I guess we're in the same boat. Not hungry. But instead of my dear mother making something, I'll probably by some fast-food when we get out of school." He paused, seeming to contemplate something. "You can come too, if you'd like."

Shion was about to politely refuse when he realized that this was a golden opportunity. Why was he pushing Isana away? The boy was trying to befriend him, and Shion was simply being stubborn. Why not? "Sure, I'd like that," Shion replied, giving Isana a warm smile. He smiled back, and they sat down at an empty table towards the back of the lunchroom.

"So you're new, huh? Where're you from?" Isana asked, trying to make conversation.

"The country," Shion replied. "My mother and I used to live out on a small vegetable farm, but she's always wanted to live in the city, so she talked with me about it and we decided to move here." He almost shut his eyes, wanting to drift off in his reminiscing. "I like it here so far. The city life is already much faster than my old rural life."

Isana giggled. "You're ranting, Shion," he snickered, poking Shion's cheek. It tinted red at his touch.

"No I'm not!" he retorted, raising his voice. He never ranted.

"Okay, okay. Whatever you say."

"You wanted to know, anyway…"

Isana shrugged in agreement. For the rest of lunch, they chatted about little insignificant things, neither wanting to delve too deeply into the other's life in fear of offending the other. Shion wasn't exactly offended, as much as he was embarrassed that he had indeed been ranting—at least for him, anyway, who usually didn't say much at all.

When they headed back to their classroom together—Shion had been lucky enough, he admitted, to be placed in the same class as Isana—they noticed a few girls excitedly gossiping in front of the door to the class. The act in itself wasn't unusual, but Shion noticed that their voices had higher pitches to them than usual, and they were all blushing for seemingly no reason. Of course, this could have been girls wasting their breath over some guy who already had a girlfriend, but their eyes shone with enlightened hope.

He caught a few phrases of their squeaky, almost incomprehensible words. "Did you see the new guy?"

"Yeah, I did!"

"Oh God, I love his eyes. And I found him first, so that means I get to try him out first!"

"No way! That's not fair, don't be a bitch…"

"Excuse me?" *

Shion sighed. At first he had thought they were talking about him, but he was standing right there. Even these petty girls would notice the object of their fascination standing right next to them, right?

"Hey, Shion, stop spacing out! Class's about to start!"

Shion snapped out of his daze at Isana's words and followed his classmate into the room. "Right, sorry," he murmured reflexively.

When they had settled themselves into their seats next to each other, they waited for the rest of their classmates to file into the room and for their teacher to start his lesson. But after everyone had sat down, the teacher—Lee-sensei—didn't take his place at the board as usual to ramble on about his latest "amazing" scientific invention. Instead, he made his way to the door and opened it. To an unseen person on the other side of the threshold, Lee-sensei muttered a few things and stepped aside, allowing the unknown person to enter the class.

At that moment, Shion's heart stopped.

* * *

_The boy had been dripping wet, lying in a puddle of mud out on the road in front of his house. The silver-haired boy had spotted him from the window of his room, which he often gazed out of, imagining what the world was like outside of his farm home. _

_The silver-haired boy had instantly shot himself up and out of the house, deviating from his usual well-behaved and calm manner. He found himself drenched himself and kneeling next to the boy, picking him up and dragging him inside with all of his strength. The smaller boy in his arms smelled like a sewer, and mud was plastered everywhere visible. The larger boy carried him to the only bathtub the small house had to offer, and flung the handle to the hottest temperature it would allow. The small boy felt like an oversized ice cube. _

_"Can you hear me?" the pale-headed boy asked, poking the small boy's cheek with an index finger. There was no response, and in fear of losing the boy, he picked him up and dumped him into the half-filled tub. He then proceeded to wipe the mud and grit away from the boy's face, and then moved on to his clothes. All the while, he rubbed at the boy's skin, trying to aid the only lukewarm water. _

_Suddenly, there was a twitch. Surprised, he glanced back at the boy's face—and saw two stunningly silver eyes gazing evenly back. They seemed to bore into the taller boy's soul, and the strange sensation made him shiver. _

_"Ah…hello…"_

_The other boy simply continued to give him his piercing stare. _

_"Err…" the boy didn't know quite what to say. This wasn't like solving a mathematical equation, where there was only one answer, and there were simple steps (A/N HAH simple.) to solving the problem. This particular equation had too many variables to solve. But he decided to start with the basics. "I'm Shion. What's your name?"_

* * *

Lee-sensei led the boy to the front of the class. He gave a loud grunt, signaling for all the chatterboxes to shut up or be sent to the hall. Which wasn't so bad in itself, until you had to be the test dummy for one of Sensei's inventions.

"Class, you have a new student who will be joining us today," Lee-sensei began for the second time that day. "His name is Hosoya…" **

"Nezumi."

Shion felt his lips murmur the name along with Lee-sensei, tenderly forming the syllables of each vowel. He still couldn't picture Nezumi as the vulgar animal he had been named after—the rat. The sharpness of his eyes and the gracefulness of his movements, those didn't belong to any other living creature on the earth. They were this man's—Nezumi's—alone. He was no rat.

Suddenly, Shion felt a chill. Breaking free of his reminiscent thoughts, he glanced up from where he was seated and found himself caught in an all-too-familiar gaze. Those silver eyes were finally staring back at him again.

"Nezumi," Shion whispered again, a fraction louder than he had before. He felt Isana shift beside him, and his face erupted in flames. What was he doing, calling a guy's name so fondly like that?

Nezumi, however, didn't take his eyes off Shion. When Lee-sensei told him to pick a seat, he immediately made his way to the conveniently empty chair on the other side of Shion. He sat down without a word.

"Er…um…"

"Psst, Shion!" Isana whispered harshly on his left side. "Do you know this guy?"

Shion turned back to Isana. "E-er…n—yes, I—I think so…um…" He could _feel _Isana's smirk. Even though they'd only known each other for a short amount of time, Isana surely knew that Shion rarely became this flustered over something.

"I see…" Looking over Shion's shoulder, Isana whispered loudly, "Nice to meet'cha, Nezumi~! I'm Shion-chan's best friend, but I'll try not to get too jealous if you try to steal him away."

Nezumi slid his gaze over to the other white-haired teen without moving his head. Just as simply, his eyes returned to the board, in which Lee-sensei was indeed explaining one of his latest creations.

"Ooh, the strong-silent type. You like people like this, Shion? I thought people like me would be more your type of crowd," Isana continued.

"Isana, that's enough," Shion muttered, his face turning an even deeper shade of red.

The boy froze for a moment, as if surprised that Shion had spoken against him, but complied and sat back down without another word—although he did shoot another glance at Nezumi. The man in question didn't turn back.

_How can this be happening?! After four whole years, he just drops his way back into my life? I mean, not that I really mind, but…this is really, honestly, way too sudden and I don't understand how something like this could happen…_

He frowned. Something was definitely happening in this city. He had met someone who looked freakishly similar to him in appearance, and now Nezumi of all people was sitting next to him in his new classroom.

_What the heck is going on?_

* * *

For the rest of the day, Nezumi wordlessly followed Shion around, whom Isana would tag along with. There was nothing Shion could do about Nezumi's unwillingness to talk, so he made small talk with Isana until they passed through the sliding doors of the entrance to the school.

Shion should have seen it coming with Isana's telltale smirk.

"See you tomorrow, Shion! Later, Nezumi!"

Before he knew what was happening, Isana was sprinting away at full speed as if a pack of bloodthirsty hounds were on his tail.

"Wait, Isana—" But Shion knew it was no use. He was alone with Nezumi now, and just like four years ago, he had no idea what to say.

"Long time no see, Shion."

* * *

Isana finally slid himself to a stop at his apartment entrance. For safekeeping, he had left his umbrella up in his room, but he decided that he simply couldn't do without it and would bring it with him to school tomorrow. Just as he was about to make his way up the steps and enter the complex, he was grabbed by the collar and yanked into an alley to the side of the building.

"Bastard! You'll regret cheating on me like that. Don't think that was the first time I've played poker, I know when someone's scamming me," a harsh, hateful voice growled into his ear.

"Wh-wha—"

"Don't play dumb with me, just hand me all the money you earned and I won't cut a hole through your heart." Just then, Isana felt a sharp tip press gently—but still painfully—into the left side of his chest.

"I don't know—"

The man _tsk_ed. "I'll give you ten seconds to fish out the money. Ten."

"But I don't even know what you're talking about!"

"Nine."

"Please, just tell me—"

Isana could barely think at all, let alone come up with a plan to make a swift getaway. There was no way out of this—he was going to die. For what? He hadn't quite heard. Something about cheating and poker…?

Isana gasped when he felt the pressure on his chest release. The blade was gone, and he was being carried off by someone—the same person, or different…?—out of the alley.

"Don't make a sound."

He was whisked into an old, run-down shack. It didn't look like anyone had been in here for years, judging by the amount of dust and mold that gathered on the shelves and floor of the one room building.

Isana couldn't really tell what had just happened, but all he knew was that this person definitely had a different voice compared to the harsh and brittle one his assailant spoke. "Thank you so much—"

Almost as quick as the blade had been removed, another one was held back in its place.

"This is for robbing Master," the cool voice spoke, and Isana found himself staring into cold, dark eyes.

* * *

*This is what I think my friends and I sound like when we fangirl. We're all nice at first, but then shit gets intense like THAT *snaps*

** Yeah. I had a tough time deciding what Nezumi's last name should be, and just decided to make it his voice actor's last name. Original, huh?

Anyway—rant time. HOLY CRAAAAAAAP I've been gone for a WHOLE MONTH! I feel really terrible, honestly…I hate doing things like this, but every time I would try to write this chapter, I'd get pissed at how the words weren't coming out as smoothly as I thought they would and would cuss my laptop out thoroughly before walking away for a while. Kind of like what I do when I check for more recent Sekaiichi Hatsukoi chapters, but there aren't any…

ANYWAYS that's a completely different fandom and I should get back on track. I tried to make this chapter longer to "kind of" make up for my looooong absence, but I believe that I failed because my plot seems cliché and choppy. I mean, some of the lines I came up with…they make me want to scream. :/ But anyway, I've accepted my OOCness for this chapter and will take ANY crap anyone wants to dish out to me about that issue. You have my complete agreement.

You'll also come to realize that these long absences aren't exactly abnormal. I'm the magical author who likes to disappear for a few weeks on end. The reviews telling me to update are like a nice smack in the face to get me back on track (I am in no way asking for reviews. I don't beg for those.) Wow, I seem to get off track a lot.

Anyhoo, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Any recommendations or tips on how to be not OOC are appreciated. Or you can just tell me that I suck. That works too. Like my volleyball coach says: "Embrace the suck."

Ja ne~!


	3. Silver Lining

Chapter Three

Silver Lining

* * *

Yashiro couldn't help but simply stare and blink at his assailant for a few moments. Was this a joke? He was just saved to be sabotaged yet again?

"C-come again?" Yashiro tried, staring into the blazing eyes of the boy facing him.

"Don't you dare deny it! You conned Master for one of his precious umbrellas the other day," the boy growled, his tone warningly low. His voice held the fury that his face failed to portray; the only clue Yashiro had that this guy was beyond pissed was his smoldering eyes and his equally heated tone.

Yashiro's eyes widened. He was talking about the owner of the store from the other day. But hadn't the man _given _him the umbrella for free? He shook his head. If he said something like that, it would only set this guy off all the more. He would have to try a different tactic.

_Should I feign naiveté? No, this guy would catch on instantly. I guess I'll have to resort to…_

Yashiro took a deep breath to steady himself. There was only one way out of this alive—he had no doubt the blade this dark-haired boy held wasn't just for show. "Look, err…I see what you're saying," Yashiro began. "I'm sorry that your master suffered because of what I did. But you see," he continued, drawing his eyebrows together the slightest bit to give an innocent appearance, "I only took it for my little brother. He…he was admitted to the hospital just this past summer, for a very rare disease. He can't even get out of his hospital bed, let alone be a kid…" He gulped. The stranger's face was softening—this was working. He needed to think fast. "He used to love walking under my umbrella with me on rainy days, and when I saw your master's store…"

The dark-haired assailant's posture eased, and he pulled the knife away from Yashiro's throat. The smaller boy, finally able to breathe again, rubbed the indent the sword had made on his neck and gave a small cough.

He could do this. Deep breaths. Think.

"I knew he would adore that amazing red umbrella your master showed me, and without thinking, I…I just…I'm sorry." Yashiro bowed his head deeply in apology. "I should have at least tried to make some sort of deal with your master…maybe asked to work it off part-time. But I didn't, and I'm sorry for that." This was it. The boy's eyes had lost their hard glint, and his expression leaned on the side of sympathetic. "Keisuke's happiness just means the world to me, and I wanted to see his smile when I brought him that umbrella." Yashiro almost cringed—it wasn't like this guy would know Arai Keisuke to begin with, or even be able to make the connection between his non-existent brother and his classmate if he did, right?

"Keisuke," the boy repeated. Yashiro felt his heart begin to pound. He couldn't know, he couldn't read through his lie that easily! He said the name again. "Keisuke." It was almost like he was tasting a new snack, and he had to let it roll off his tongue more than once to decide whether or not he liked it. Finally, he continued. "It seems like you love this brother of yours a lot…"

Yashiro _just _caught himself from breathing a sigh of relief. "Yes," he replied, thanking everything lucky that he didn't stutter. "He's my everything."

_That _definitely hit home. Yashiro's assailant took a few steps back, his face falling. "I…I don't know what to say." Yashiro was just about to leave it at that and quickly make his escape, but then the taller boy continued. "But that still doesn't mean you're off the hook. You have to pay Master back."

This time, Yashiro couldn't keep himself from cringing.

"Well, you see…" he began, not quite sure how to dig himself out of this new hole of his, "I go to school during the week and visit Keisuke whenever I can, so I can't possibly…"

"Come work at Master's shop until your debt is repaid."

_What?!_

Yashiro was about to voice his thoughts at that. Work at that run-down little shack? And with _this _guy who was completely willing to slice him up with a blade? _No thank you, _Yashiro thought, and was about to say when he stopped himself short. This wasn't really the greatest of all situations to be in, no doubt. How expensive could an umbrella—and one sold at a raggedy little store such as that—really be? It'd probably be working a couple of hours for five days, tops. If it would get him out of this mess, he'd do it.

"Um…yeah, okay. Just until my debt is repaid. When do I start?" Yashiro asked, trying to make himself sound as innocent as possible.

At that, the boy shot him the smallest of smiles. It was so small that Yashiro couldn't tell if he was seeing things or not. "Start the first day you're free, if you would. I'm Yatogami Kuroh. I'm glad to be working with you…?"

It took Yashiro a second to realize that this guy—Yatogami—was asking for his name. He almost chuckled at the discreet tactic. This was definitely an amusing guy, no matter how dangerous he was. "Isana Yashiro. Nice to meet'cha, Kuroh-chan!"

* * *

Allen gaped at the skyscrapers and buildings that surrounded him. Skyscrapers weren't all hype, after all—they really looked like they were stretching into the sky! The boy felt like if he took an elevator to the top floor and sat on the roof, he would be able to touch the clouds.

He blushed at his naiveté. How could he be thinking such childish things? He was here for a better life. He'd go to school, get a job, and raise his own family. This was what he'd always wanted to do—live the city life and end his eternal journey through rugged landscapes, villages and towns. He'd make a permanent living here, and maybe _actually _get to live along the way.

He chuckled despite himself as he recalled the night before. He'd arrived at the outskirts of the city at dusk, and had walked into an old run down pub that offered a handful of drunken old men just waiting to be swindled. After about ten rounds of poker, with him cheating—and winning—all the while, they began to catch on to Allen's tricks through their drunken haze. Then that strangely good-looking man had appeared from out of nowhere and challenged him, each betting all the money they had on them at that moment. It was trickier to cheat the guy since he was sober, but Allen was far too good at cheating people out of their money to lose.

Obviously, the guy had been pissed when he lost, but he gave Allen the money, swearing under his breath. If looks could kill, Allen would be a dead man. Those eyes could stare daggers right into Allen's soul.

He'd left the outskirts that night as well, and slept in a crappy motel inside the city. The price of one night's stay had been next to nothing, since the motel's competition were five-star hotels that surrounded it. Allen had thanked God for his amazing luck.

Now it was midday, and he was planning on applying for a high school that was near his new apartment. He'd conned a few more guys that morning—each suffering from horrible hangovers—and paid the rent with that money. *

Just as Allen was about to reenter his apartment to grab the lunch he'd forgotten, he gasped when he saw the intimidating sober guy from yesterday walk up to the steps. Another boy was walking up them, only to be yanked down by the man and dragged into an alley. Allen's eyes widened at the sight and he shuffled his way around to the corner of the alley and listened.

"Bastard! You'll regret cheating on me like that. Don't think that was the first time I've played poker, I know when someone's scamming me."

Allen almost gasped. He was talking about _him, _right? Who was this kid? Didn't he have nothing to do with what happened last night? The boy seemed confused as well, and couldn't even form a sentence to defend himself.

"Don't play dumb with me, just hand me all the money you earned and I won't cut a hole through your heart."

_Oh God, he has a knife?!_

The man continued to ask for his money back, and Allen was just about to turn the corner and reveal himself when the sounds of the boy's struggles ceased.

_Huh?_

Allen heard the man _tsk _and heard the unmistakable sound of a blade being put away. No, not a knife at all—an actual _sword. _One of those long Asian ones they always used in the ninja movies Allen had watched as a kid. **

Suddenly, Allen heard footsteps as if the man was leaving the alley. _I can't let him see me! _He burst into a sprint back to the entrance to the apartment and scrambled his way up the steps just as the man emerged from the shadows of the alley. He shoved the double doors open and breathed a sigh of relief when his back hit the other side of the doors.

Only then did he have the time to digest the situation. _Wait. He mistook someone for me? _Allen placed a hand on his head and the other on his left eye. _Maybe he was drunk when I cheated him after all. How do you mistake someone for a kid with white hair and a scar?_

* * *

Rough and short chapter…sorry ^^' I really had to get something out. But I might not update for a while for the next chapter (my deepest apologies!) because my mom and I are having issues and I really need to update my other two ongoing stories as well.

*I have never rented an apartment and don't really know what the specifics of doing so are, so I won't get into much detail about Shiro-chan and Allen-kun staying in (the same!) apartment.

**So…Allen's European, right? And everyone loves ninja movies. I just wanted to clarify that Allen didn't grow up in Japan or anything ^^'

Thank you for reading! Uhm, I did say that I don't beg for reviews…but they _do _make me happy ^^ (saying that kind of defeats the purpose, BAKA HIKARI) Shut up, conscience. -.-

I know. I'm just a weird person. Anyway, thank you for reading! Any OOC tips are much appreciated! C'mon. I know there was some. Next chapter will feature a lot more of the boys finally meeting each other, and their friendships will blossom! Relationshippy stuff will come later in the story once the plot has developed, so please be patient ;D I do the best I can! (Most of the time. Ish.)

Ja ne~!


	4. Offensive Color

Chapter Four

Offensive Color

* * *

Allen, still trying to digest what had happened earlier, began to try to settle into his new apartment. It wasn't exactly large, but was a rather cozy size—perfect for him. The kitchen seemed to be tucked into a small corner of the living room, which sported little furniture.

_At least I have a decent bed to sleep on tonight, though, _Allen reminded himself, ashamed that he had been disappointed.

Once he had checked out all of his rooms, tried out the bed (it also wasn't as soft as Allen expected), and inspected the cookware in the kitchen, he decided that he would chance another look around town. Obviously, that man thought he had caught Allen, so he'd stop looking for him, right?

Allen blushed when he realized that he was terribly excited to explore the city. All the small towns he'd been to before paled in comparison to this enormous, bustling community. He was out of the complex in less than a minute, hurrying down the steps that led to the big double doors. At first, he kept glancing around for that man with the Asian sword, but as he got farther and farther away from the apartment he began to feel more secure and stopped checking for the man around every corner.

One thing he noticed was that, unlike small towns, the people here didn't greet you as they passed or mutter an apology if you bumped into them. Allen still did so out of politeness, but as the day wore on and he began to make his way deeper into the city, he stopped greeting people when they made eye contact with him. He would simply give them a small smile, too worn out to do much else.

_It's only the first day and the city's already changing me, _Allen realized he was growing more and more irritated as he walked further. He stopped and took a deep breath to calm himself before changing directions. He would go see where his school was, since he'd be jumping straight into the system the next day.

He wound his way through the streets through the help of a map he had picked up on his way inside the city—it wasn't exactly updated, since most people used the help of technology to find their way around—but it worked well enough. He was close to the school now. He made his way up to the entrance gates, where he was surprised to see two boys his age standing there in school uniform, talking to each other.

_School's out at this time, isn't it? What are they doing here?_

He found himself hiding behind another column, eavesdropping, before he knew what he was doing.

"…But even so, I would have never expected to see you here again…" a soft, light voice murmured. Allen's eyebrows drew together, wondering what was going on between these two guys.

"It's been four long years, hasn't it?" a deeper, more masculine voice answered. "I'm taller than you now, if you haven't noticed." Allen could hear the smirk in his voice.

"Eh? No way!"

"You can check if you want, I'm a full couple of centimeters taller than you."

"That's no fair, Nezumi…"

"You should know about genetics and things like this, prodigy. It has nothing to do with being fair or not—and even if you were to say that, I would just say—"

Allen stepped out from the column, snickering the slightest bit. "You two sound like an old married couple!" he laughed, pointing at the two boys. They immediately stopped talking to stare at Allen, who stared back, then choked on his own laughter.

The shorter boy, standing next to the one he had called Nezumi, was staring back at him with deep amber eyes—matched with silky white hair.

"Ah, you—!" Allen cried, gaping at the boy. His own eyes widened, but he didn't seem to be as surprised as Allen.

"You're not Isana…" the boy murmured to himself.

_Isana…?_

"Wait, are you okay now? You're not hurt?" Allen asked, immediately feeling concern for the boy—taking over his first instinct of being surprised. But the thought lingered in his head—_How can this guy look so much like me?_

Nezumi turned back to the boy at his side. "You know him, Shion?" he asked.

Shion shook his head. "We haven't met before, no. But he looks like Isana, doesn't he?"

The dark-haired boy rolled his eyes. "Great observation, there."

"Are you okay?" Allen repeated, confused by who this Isana person was.

Shion tipped his head to the side. "I'm fine. Nothing happened. I think I should be asking if you, yourself, are okay, though." He extended his hand toward Allen. "In any case, I'm Shion, and this is Nezumi—"

"Idiot!" Nezumi interrupted him. "Don't give our names out to this guy, what if he's crazy?"

"I'm not crazy!" Allen protested, returning their attention to him. "I'm just confused…you were attacked over by my apartment, weren't you? By a guy with a sword?"

He glanced over at Nezumi, who looked exasperated. "This guy really is whacked. Let's just go talk about this somewhere else, Shion."

"We weren't talking about anything in particular," Shion replied, "and this guy interests me. I mean, he looks like both Isana and I—it's an unnatural phenomenon, Nezumi! When do you meet two other people who look almost exactly like you?" Shion stopped his rambling to take in all of Allen's features. "Besides your scar, um…"

"Allen Walker," he finished.

"Allen," Shion repeated. "That's a nice name. Foreign, right? Nice to meet you, Allen Walker!" He was smiling brightly, and extended his hand again, which Allen gripped graciously. This was the first person in the city who had looked at him with such kind eyes—and he was glad to know that they'd be going to the same school. "Also," Shion added, "don't mind Nezumi, he likes you too."

"Wha—"

"Let's go, Allen, I'll show you around town!" Allen found himself being dragged away by Shion, Nezumi hot on their heels, shouting at the calmly laughing boy tugging him along.

* * *

When they reached one of the many shopping centers of the city, about a five minute jog-walk (depending on how you looked at it since they were escaping from Nezumi's wrath) from their school. Nezumi had caught up with them, and Shion stopped and rested his hands on his knees, doubled-over and panting. Allen cocked his head to the side. They hadn't been running for that long or very hard, so why was he out of breath?

By the time Shion had recollected himself, Nezumi was asking Allen about what he was talking about earlier—about Shion getting attacked.

At that, Allen told them the story about his gambling to be able to live in the city, and how the sober man had tried to track him down but found the wrong person. Then he told them about his doubts over whether the man had really been sober or not—and then he had met Shion.

"We look freakishly similar," Allen commented after finishing his story.

Shion nodded. "But we're not the only ones," he added with a warm smile.

_Wait…what?_

"What?" Allen asked, wide-eyed. What did the kid mean by that?

"There's another boy—Isana Yashiro—who looks like me. And you, for that matter." He sighed. "I really wonder if there's any scientific connection between the three of us…"

"Three?" Allen gasped. "There are _three _of us?" He was almost too shocked to speak. So did this mean that the boy who had been assaulted was actually this Isana Yashiro person? "Does he go to our school, too?"

_"Our _school? You're telling me that _you _are going to West Gakuen* too?" Nezumi interjected, sounding irritated.

_What did I do to make him dislike me? _Allen wondered, his eyebrows drawing together slightly. But he disregarded the taller boy's negativity when Shion's face immediately warmed into a welcoming smile. "Really? That's good, I'll introduce you to Isana tomorrow," he told him enthusiastically.

Allen grinned and, behind Shion's back, made a face at Nezumi, who glared at him. "Sounds great, Shion. I can't wait to—"

"You!"

Allen jumped, his spine tingling from shock. He spun around to see the very same sober man he had tricked the night before storming up to him, already pulling out his blade. A smirk was firmly planted on his lips, but his eyes reflected nothing but cold menace. "Nice to meet you, I'm Kanda—and you're a dead man."

* * *

*I made it "West Gakuen" because of the West Block in No. 6. It doesn't really have anything to do with the West or East or any type of directions…I just wanted to incorporate a little bit of everything from every anime in this crossover. Like the umbrella, Lee-sensei (Kamui, if you didn't pick that up ^^') and now the West Block.

SO. About that ending. I felt like Kanda's line was a bit cheesy but they had to know his name SOMEhow ^^" so I know that was a little OOC. But it's a crossover, so a little OOC is to be expected…err…right?

I feel like some parts of this chapter are a little sketchy, but I'm experimenting on whether I can listen to music and write at the same time or not. So if there are any major issues or concerns, I'll go back and edit the chapter to make it better.

ANOTHER long delay for the chapter, I know! I'm so sorry D: I feel like such an ass for making you guys wait and also for giving you such a messy chapter. I'll do better next time. I promise.

Thank you for your reviews! I really love reading them, and they are the motivation for me to (eventually!) keep returning to my story.

Ja ne~!


	5. Spectrum of Grey

Chapter 5

Spectrum of Grey

* * *

Shion couldn't help but simply stare at the impressive man standing before them. In the middle of so many passers-by, he had pulled out his katana and was pointing it at Allen. Some of the pedestrians stopped to look upon the scene, but dismissed it as some movie scene or something of the like. For a moment, Shion wondered just how these people could ignore such a spectacle, but he shrugged the thought away. For now, he had to talk this man—Kanda—out of killing Allen. Or at least, he _thought _that was the case.

But Nezumi beat him to it. "Who the hell are you?" he asked, narrowing his eyes; Shion didn't let it go unnoticed that Nezumi slightly shouldered himself in front of the smaller boy.

Kanda didn't take his eyes off of Allen. "It won't matter exactly who I am in a couple of seconds." He smirked. "This can go two ways, shortie. Either you hand me my money or I'll slit your throat. I'm sure you don't have a death wish this fine afternoon, right?"

Shion noticed that by this point, Allen had gotten over his initial surprise of seeing the man appear out of nowhere and threaten him with a katana, and was now staring evenly at Kanda. Shion almost wanted to clap in admiration—it was amazing that Allen could remain calm even in a situation such as this.

"Look, Kanda—"

"No. No deals or any of that shit. Give me the money or die. Pick fast, I get bored easily." Kanda's smirk flipped into a scowl, and Shion could have sword that he saw a dark aura begin to build around the man—however logically impossible that was.

Allen held up his hands in surrender, his façade failing him slightly. "Okay, okay, calm down. I don't have the money with me—it's at my apartment…" Shion easily saw through the lie. Allen's pupils dilated the slightest bit, indicating that he was telling something other than the truth. Shion let a small smile plant itself on his lips; Allen's bravery was something else. Even being threatened with a katana, he managed to think clearly and even lie in a believable way. His boldness reminded Shion of Isana.

_Well, I guess they resemble each other in more ways than one, huh?_

_I wonder how far our similarities reach…_

The thought that accompanied the former lingered in Shion's mind the whole walk back to Allen's apartment, since Shion wanted to make sure nothing happened to the newcomer. Nezumi went along begrudgingly, quickly making his way in front of Shion—between him and Kanda.

Shion's cheeks tinted the slightest shade of red at Nezumi's repetitively protective gestures, though he said nothing about it to the now taller man.

Shion took the moment to finally take in all of Nezumi's features. He really was taller than him now…and his hair was longer. Shion decided that he quite liked it in the messy ponytail Nezumi held his dark hair up in. He also noticed that Nezumi looked much healthier than when he had first met the seemingly older boy, years ago. He remembered how he hadn't even had the chance to say goodbye…

While Shion was dwelling amidst his thoughts of the past, the group made their way through the bustling crowds of the city to a calmer suburban place where Allen's apartment complex was located. Kanda made a grunt of recognition, since this was the apartment he had met the other boy who looked almost exactly like Allen.

Though the apartment had a warm and friendly exterior, it did nothing to help the cold premonition Allen felt when he thought of what the raven-haired boy might do when he found out that the money wasn't actually in his apartment, and he felt sick knowing that he could have prevented a situation such as this by simply not cheating, or not gambling, the night before. But still, who knew that a madman with a _katana _would show up because he was pissed he had been cheated? Or, at least, he seemed mad.

Nonetheless, he showed them up the elevator and to his own, new apartment.

"Alright…we're here."

Shion's head snapped up. When had they gotten inside of the apartment complex?

"Well," Kanda said, "give me the money that is rightfully mine." He scowled when Allen hesitated. "Now, you bean sprout!"

Allen, instead of stiffening and becoming frightened, simply sighed. "Look, even if I _did _cheat on poker—"

"I don't want to hear your excuses," Kanda interrupted him, reaching for his katana.

At this, Allen tensed. "Can't we just talk this out?"

"No."

"Why do you want the money so bad, anyway? It wasn't that much to begin with!"

"Even if he cheated, you weren't smart enough to realize that he _was _cheating you, right—" Shion began lightheartedly, but—

With a flash of reflected light, Shion froze when he found himself staring at the tip of Kanda's deadly katana, and it was all he could do not to yelp in shock.

_Fast!_

Almost immediately, Nezumi yanked Shion away from Kanda and his katana, protectively pulling the smaller boy into his chest.

_He really is taller than me…_

With a scowl, Kanda rebuked, "Stay out of this." At that, he began to position his katana towards the two—

Before he felt a strong hand grip his wrist with intense force.

Kanda's eyebrow quirked the slightest bit in surprise as he turned to face the perpetrator. Before he could say anything, however, he noticed the actual _hand _that was binding his wrist.

It was a shade of red Kanda had never seen on another human's skin before, probably due to its leathery texture. (It's kinda leatheryish right?) Shion and Nezumi also followed Kanda's gaze to the hand, which surprised them—they hadn't noticed the hand earlier.

"Stop involving them, they have nothing to do with this," Allen said firmly, his voice giving a hint of warning.

Kanda eyed him for a few seconds, his expression impassive. _He cares about these two to the point of challenging a man armed with a katana? Huh._

Kanda clicked his tongue in irritation. "I don't have time for this." After a slight pause, he put away the katana. "Fine. Keep the money." With that, Kanda made his way out of Allen's apartment, leaving a stormy atmosphere in his wake.

Shion decided to speak up after a few minutes of silence. Sliding himself away from Nezumi's protective embrace, he turned to Allen. "Allen, are you sure you'll be okay? That guy looked dangerous," he said, placing a hand on Allen's shoulder.

Allen nodded absently, still staring at the door where Kanda had closed it in quiet fury minutes before.

"Well, I think it's about time we get out of here, Shion," Nezumi said, taking the hand that rested on Allen's shoulder and tugging him toward the door. "How's that mother of yours doing? I've always wanted to try the cooking you spoke so fondly of."

Shion found himself getting caught up in Nezumi's words, and just before they exited the room, Shion called, "Ah, see you at school tomorrow, Allen! Stay safe!"

Whether or not Allen replied, Shion wouldn't know. Nezumi shut the door and began pulling Shion in the direction of his home.

After a short walk and halfway through their trek, Shion tipped his head to the side, though Nezumi couldn't see it—he was still in front of Shion, guiding the way to the smaller boy's home. "Um, Nezumi?" Shion asked, "How do you know where my new house is, if you've never been there?"

The dark-haired boy turned his head the slightest bit to allow Shion to see his smirk. "What a dutiful son, doing his mother's laundry so early in the morning."

Shion blinked. "You saw me putting Mother's laundry out? By chance?"

Nezumi half-chuckled. "We met by chance, too, didn't we? Ah, we're here."

He let go of Shion's hand, and the boy immediately felt a shiver run down his back. He hadn't realized how warm Nezumi's hand was.

Before Shion opened the door to his house, he turned to Nezumi, giving him a small smile. "Well, I'm very glad we could still meet again, Nezumi. I've missed you." He then turned around to open the door, not giving a second thought to the words he had just said—they were true, weren't they?

What he failed to notice was the slightest of blushes that tinted Nezumi's cheeks at his words.

"Mother! I'm home! Guess who's here?"

* * *

After Nezumi talking with Karen about different recipes and such, Shion brought Nezumi to his new room. Nezumi offered to unpack the rest of Shion's belongings, since he _had _invited himself into the boy's home. The least he could do was help. While he was working, Shion made his way to his bed and sat down, taking in the little things about this older Nezumi. He moved so elegantly; it caused Shion to again question just _why _he was called a rat.

When Nezumi was finally done, he sat down next to Shion on his bed. (A/N Hehe. Hehehe.)

"It really has been a long time, hasn't it?" Nezumi asked, breaking the silence that had seemed to stretch for a couple minutes now.

Shion giggled. "We've been saying that a lot, Nezumi."

"But it's true, isn't it?" he continued. "I mean, just look at me now. I'm taller than you."

They both laughed even though Shion tried to protest the statement, and began to discuss how much different the other looked. After talking for a few minutes about such things, Shion threw himself back onto the bed to stare up at the ceiling.

"I'm glad you've been doing well, Nezumi. You look…better."

Nezumi turned his face away. "What's that supposed to mean…"

Giggling, Shion stood up and made his way to a pile of books that he had accumulated over the years. They were all old classics or plays, things that had reminded him of Nezumi during their years apart. "Here, I think you might already have this, but you loved the old books Mother kept at the house when we first met. So I got these, you know…" Shion trailed off when his gaze met Nezumi's. Those were definitely the same eyes from his memories…they hadn't changed a single bit.

Nezumi stood up as well, joining Shion at the pile of books.

"I'm ever so thankful that my lord approves of my appearance." Nezumi's serious expression shifted into a smirk, and he knelt down to one knee, taking Shion's hand in his own. "I am forever indebted to you." And with that line—probably a quote from an old play Nezumi idolized—he touched his lips softly to the top of Shion's right hand, surprising Shion and flushing his pale face pink.

"N-Nezumi…" Shion stammered when Nezumi stood back up to look down at the shorter boy.

An unknown look crossed Nezumi's face for a single instant, but faded just as quickly as it'd come. "C'mon, show me the books. I want to see if you have any that I haven't read."

* * *

Yashiro sighed into the heel of his hand. So this was what it was like to work in a shop that nobody wanted to visit. Just sit for around three hours and get paid accordingly.

_How does Kuroh-kun do it?_

Suddenly, the back door opened, but Yashiro didn't have to turn around to see who it was. _Speak of the devil. _"Kuroh-kun! What're you doing?"

Kuroh turned to Yashiro, an unusually joyful expression easing the tension in his features the slightest bit, though he tried to hide it and keep his usual serious mask from slipping. "Master…Master said I could dust his umbrellas…so I shall get to it, right away." Still, he couldn't completely hide the hint of excitement in the way his voice pitched.

Yashiro felt his eyebrow twitch. _What just happened?_

And with that, Kuroh seemed to glide about the store, dusting the unsightly particles off the stunning umbrellas with a close precision, much alike to how a jeweler would polish the finest diamond. Yashiro blinked a few times at the serious way Kuroh had approached something so trivial and sweatdropped.

_Just how much does this guy respect his master? It's a little creepy!_

* * *

GUYS. I LOVE YOU AND I'M SORRY. I was gone for forever ;-; I'm such an asshole. Really. If you guys ever feel the urge to rage to me in your reviews feel free—I completely deserve it.

On another note.

My. Wonderful. And. Lovely. **Pot of Fire** (She says don't ask xD) omg I love you so much for helping me with this. If you guys haven't noticed I can't portray Kanda for shit, so she helps me so much with my OOCness and the things I've been lacking ^^ Love ya. Stay beautiful *^*

Ja ne~!


	6. Monochromatic Scenery

Chapter 6

Monochromatic Scenery

* * *

Walking to school that morning, Isana found himself recalling the events of the day before. He had almost gotten killed—_twice_, and with katanas to boot—and had begun working at the small umbrella shop he had recently received his own vibrant umbrella from, along with one of his assailants. The boy in question being slightly peculiar in the way he acted.

_Oh well, though. _Isana shrugged, sliding his umbrella up his shoulder and swinging his other arm as he walked. _Ah right. I wonder if Shion and Nezumi are going to school with each other…_ he found himself thinking, and laughed at the thought. Shion acted so cute whenever he was near Nezumi—he couldn't exactly pinpoint what it was, but Shion always acted slightly different around the boy who apparently appeared again from the smaller boy's past.

When he reached the school gates, he found the very objects of his current thoughts. He walked past them, and without stopping his loping walk, spun around to face the pair and said, "If you two lovebirds don't hurry, you'll be late for class!" And with that, he turned back around and resumed his forward walk, chuckling to himself the slightest bit at Shion's stammered greeting.

Indeed, he arrived to their first period class five minutes before the pair, even though he stopped to chat to different passers-by as they greeted him. He had another encounter with Arai Keisuke, and he stopped to chat with the boy after he had been called over, though it still confused him to remember the brief encounter he had with his older sister.

When Shion and Nezumi finally settled into their seats beside Isana, he turned to eye them suspiciously. "What took you two so long?" he asked, his tone not too far from suggestive.

Shion turned to him and cocked his head slightly, causing Isana to raise an eyebrow. "We were just talking."

Isana gave a small _pfft _of laughter. He hadn't seen this clueless side to Shion yet—his voice was as innocent as the glimmer in his crimson eyes.

At that, Isana tipped his head to the side himself in thought. _Red eyes…? That's an unusual color, alright. I wonder if he wears colored contacts?_

Suddenly, there was a loud crash outside the classroom, interrupting Isana from his thoughts. Nezumi sighed in annoyance beside Shion, but even he turned his head towards the door in curiosity as shouts resounded from the hallway.

"What the fuck are you doing here!"

"That's my line! Why are you here if you live outside the city!"

"I don't live outside the city, idiot!"

"Then why are you transferring here, when—"

Isana rested his cheek on the heel of his hand as he watched Lee-sensei throw the door open in obvious fury, grabbing the squabbling pair—whoever they may be—and dragging them inside.

After throwing the two boys inside the classroom, Lee-sensei pointed to the two boys. "This is Allen Walker, and he will be attending our school starting today. Kanda Yu will also be transferring to our class due to complaints from his previous class." Isana tipped his head at the annoyed tone in Lee-sensei's voice as he spoke of Yu Kanda's reason of transferring. Nonetheless, he continued, "So please welcome them warmly."

Light eyes widened at the sight of the one he had called Allen Walker. The boy looked extremely familiar—or maybe it was the fact that he looked almost _just like _he and Shion?

_No. It can't be…another major coincidence? _

Beside him, Shion raised his hand. "Allen, up here!" he called, his voice as soft as ever though he had raised the volume. Isana noticed that Nezumi's eyes narrowed as Allen spotted Shion and abandoned his partner transfer student to walk towards their seats—

_Wait. _

Isana glanced at the slightly scowling Nezumi, then back to the other transfer student. Then back again. After a few more double-takes, his neck began to ache, though he hardly felt it through the initial shock that came with his realization.

This boy—Yu Kanda—Nezumi, and—if memory served him correctly—_Yatogami Kuroh _all looked very, _very _similar as well.

Freakishly so. Almost as freakishly as him, Shion, and now Allen Walker.

But before he could indulge Shion on his thoughts, the boy was gesturing towards Allen Walker. "Isana, this is Allen, and Allen, this is Isana Yashiro," Shion explained.

Allen blinked a few times at Isana before his jaw dropped. "So you're the boy Kanda almost killed!"

_Wait…Kanda…?_

At that, Isana's own jaw fell open and he whipped back around to stare at the raven-haired teen who was currently making his way to an open seat in the back of the classroom. Right—that was the guy who had almost killed him with his katana. Until Kuroh had shown up and threatened him with his own katana, of course.

"Th-that's right…" Isana replied, a bit in shock himself. So many things were happening at once, it was hard to keep up.

"So that guy is transferring to our class now?" Nezumi asked, his tone similar to Lee-sensei's when he had spoken. "That'll be interesting."

"You should be nice, Nezumi. I'm sure he's not as bad as we've made him out to be," Shion tried, but even his voice sounded slightly strained.

Nezumi clicked his tongue. "Yeah, he's great, after he pointed his katana at you and all. Wonderful guy."

Isana turned to Shion. "He threatened you?"

Shion shrugged, as if to say _'It couldn't be helped.' _"Yes, but—"

"Does that idiot have his katana with him _now?"_

Isana turned to Nezumi before spinning back around to look at Kanda once again. Indeed, the boy's katana was sheathed at his side, with one hand seeming to hover around it constantly. Isana tipped his head to the side. He knew this was a strange school, but did they really allow swords and the like to be brought into the classrooms?

Isana's eyebrow twitched the slightest bit. _And what did that idiot samurai have against albinos?_

Suddenly, Kanda's head shot up, and he flashed a steely glare at the four of them. "What are you idiots looking at?" His death stare lingered someplace to Isana's right, and when he turned his head to see who was standing there, it was Allen holding the taller boy's glare. The boy didn't glare back as much as he simply _looked _back at Kanda, his grey eyes glimmering in defiance, if anything.

Isana heard Kanda give an irritated sound, and by the time he had turned back around, beginning to grow tiresome of the back-and-forth conversation, the teen had already sat himself down at a desk, looking as if the whole world pissed him off.

_Well, it probably does, but that's beside the point. _Isana laughed aloud at the thought and sat himself down again next to Shion.

"So nice to meet you, Allen! Like Shion said, I'm Isana." He smiled warmly at Allen, who returned the gesture himself. "I guess I'll be the first to say this, but the three of us—"

"Look extremely similar, right?" Allen continued, before he held up a hand in panic. "Ah, sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt you."

But his words fell on deaf ears—Isana was too captivated by the hand Allen had held up. Allen followed his gaze and the air around him seemed to change slightly, his warmly polite front giving way to a cooler emotion.

When Isana didn't say anything, just continued to stare, Allen put his arm down. "Aren't you going to ask?" He sounded like he'd said it plenty of times in the past, given how exasperated he sounded when the words left his lips. So Isana closed his eyes for the slightest moment before replying.

"No, I don't need to know as of now," he chirped, his words not matching his lighthearted tone in the slightest, and flashing Allen a smile before turning to Shion. "So where did the two of you meet?" he asked, curious as to why Shion seemed to know Allen and Kanda before anyone else. Though he wouldn't ask about the brooding boy in the back of the class.

Shion laughed lightly. "Ah, that's a long story…"

* * *

Isana sighed as he made his way through the city streets swimming with people, knowing that the only things waiting for him were umbrellas, umbrellas and more umbrellas—with not even as much as one customer. The only thing that brightened his mood was the fact that Kuroh would be there; _he _was a very amusing person, indeed.

He giggled when he remembered how strange Kuroh became whenever he talked about his elusive Master, and unconsciously picked up his pace through the endless current of bodies and voices.

Finally, after fighting his way through the concrete jungle, he made it to the little shop tucked between those two magnificent looking department stores.

"I'm here!" he called when he opened the door, more or less expecting an answer from Kuroh and receiving one this time around.

"Hurry up, you're five minutes late. Put this on." At his words, Kuroh flung a beige apron at Isana, who traded it for his black outer layer to his school uniform. He closed his eyes for a moment at the blissful feeling of cool air touching the air-deprived skin on his neck—really, why _did _they still have to wear such high collars in this heat?

Tying the apron himself around his white undershirt, he made his way behind the counter to take his place beside Kuroh after placing the uniform on a stool in a sloppy fashion.

Isana caught Kuroh eying the uniform more than once and was unsuccessful in suppressing his giggle. "If you want to go fold it, you can, Kuroh," he said, turning around to watch Kuroh's face lose its tight appearance in relief as he reached for the black cloth. After carefully folding it and putting it neatly back on the stool, he turned a slightly offended look in Isana's direction.

"You should take better care of your things," Kuroh said before taking his place at the counter once again.

The smaller boy laughed again. "My bad, my bad. Who are you, my wife?" he teased, lifting a finger to poke Kuroh lightly on the cheek. "You wouldn't make a bad waifu~"

At that, Kuroh's expression darkened ten times over. "Say that again, Isana Yashiro," he seemed to growl, and reached for the katana that also never left his waist.

The action somewhat reminded Isana of that killer samurai, and he sighed, "Man, school was such a pain today. We were let out late because something went wrong with Lee-sensei's experiment!"

"I have no idea why you're telling me this, but if it's about your school, Master wants me to go there starting sometime this week."

Isana's eyes widened at the statement and he eyed Kuroh with new seriousness. "Really?"

The taller boy nodded. "He said that I might as well, since you're able to work here and go to school. Even if you _are _late every day," he added, giving the white-haired boy a sidelong glance. "So, what is school like, exactly?"

Isana blinked. "Kuroh, you…have you never been to school?" He tried not to sound _too _shocked, but if that was the case…

He nodded innocently. "Not once."

The corner of Isana's mouth quirked at the blunt statement. _He really is a strange guy. _"Ah, well, a lot of people are transferring as of late so you'll be fine."

"A lot of people? What do you mean by that?"

Isana laughed at the question before turning around to face the large selection of umbrellas that were spread before him. "I guess you'll just have to see for yourself when you meet them, right? I'll give you a tour of the school!"

There was a pause before Kuroh responded, "Ah…thank you. I look forward to it."

* * *

Allen found himself walking back to his apartment with mixed emotions. His unlikely encounter with Kanda surely stirred him up, and being in the same class with the boy was an even large shock, but the thing that had really gotten him throughout the course of the day was Shion and Isana. It was a crazy coincidence—going to the same school; being in the same _class _as two people who looked almost exactly like you.

He remembered Shion saying something like: "But on average, there are six to seven people in the world that look like you, so just think of this as a big coincidence! It's rather unique, isn't it?"

Regardless of the assuring words, Allen sighed heavily as he made his way through city streets crowded with both buildings and pedestrians. The constant noise of animated billboards and cell phones and people didn't leave him with any room for thought, so he decided that he'd sort through his muddled feelings when he was back in the quiet shell of his apartment.

For now, he would go to one of the many fast-food shops that were scattered about the streets and eat his heart out. He was exhausted simply from being at school for one whole day.

_I pray that I'll survive a whole year like this…_

* * *

A/N

Herpderp. Well, here I am with another spiffy update as always. Heh. Heh. Laugh with me. (I'm so tired ohmygod help me Dx)

ANOTHER HUGE THANK YOU TO **Pot of Fire **OHGOSH I LOVE YA SO MUCH. This girl helps me so much when I get carried away and start making up random crap for personalities with all these characters xD because there are just so many to keep up with, ugh. But I love it. Anyways. Stay awesome and stay my beta reader, ne?

Umm...there might have been a few errors here and there as of continuity, but I tried my best after nine hours of volleyball today (; *le conscience appears* But Baka Hikari, you procrastinated so much! If you had just updated a few days ago it would have been better, ne~?

Shut the fuck up, conscience -_- Anyway, enough of me being weird. HOPEFULLY I will have another chapter up by this weekend? Right? Right? As always, I love the reviews, and I'm glad to know people are liking the story. Thank you all and have a wonderful day, I hope it is filled with yaoi goodness~

Ja ne~!


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